Working Underwater: The Story of the Commercial Diving Industry

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Above: A replica of a Mark V diving helmet. COURTESY OF THE AUTHOR. Right: Many a commercial diver learned the trade as a Navy diver. This underwater sailor is undergoing training at Camp Endicott, Rhode Island, during World War II. Prior to the war, the commercial aspect of diving had centered largely on salvage, the repair and maintenance of vessels or building and maintaining underwater infrastructure, such as wharves and piers. There was work, but not much. It’s been estimated that before 1941 the U.S. had only 250 trained divers. WORKING UNDERWATER: The Story of the Commercial Diving Industry 36
During the war, the focus on diving obviously was related to the prosecution of hostilities or maritime and salvage or rescue. But with peace came a whole new career field for commercial divers, many of them former Navy frogmen. In 1946, Everett W. Edmund with partner Pat Madison started a retail business they called M&E Marine in Camden, New Jersey. The created a division they call MAR-VEL Underwater Equipment and their store became the first retail outlet to focus only on the diving industry, both commercial and recreational. Their primary source of inventory was surplus U.S. Navy equipment, from Mark V helmets to diving suits and other equipment associated with surface supply diving to scuba tanks (still called “Lungs”), facemasks and swim fins. At first, they worried how in the world they were going to sell all the used diving gear they acquired at auction, but in a vigorous post-war economy, business flourished. In offering scuba gear for sale at their store or by Above: A U.S. Navy sailor using a Momsen Lung rebreather. In October 1944 the U.S submarine Tang was sunk by one of its own torpedoes east of Meizhou Island in the Taiwan Strait, coming to rest in 180 feet of water. Thirteen sailors escaped from the vessel’s forward escape trunk, some of them using Momsen lungs. Of those thirteen sailors, five survived to be rescued. It is the only known use of the Momsen lung. Left: Vice Admiral Charles Momsen. Momsen invented of the rebreather which bears his name when he was a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. THE HISTORY OF COMMERCIAL DIVING 37
Page 1 and 2: WORKING UNDERWATER The Story of the
Page 3 and 4: WORKING UNDERWATER The Story of the
Page 5 and 6: An early day diver suiting up. CONT
Page 7 and 8: Mainstream Commercial Divers, Inc.
Page 9 and 10: THE HISTORY OF COMMERCIAL DIVING Wh
Page 11 and 12: Oppian in the second century A.D:
Page 13 and 14: ell was lowered into the Tagus Rive
Page 15 and 16: 1788, when John Smeaton (1724-1792)
Page 17 and 18: With the world’s first practical
Page 19 and 20: Charles Deane died in 1848, but bro
Page 21 and 22: usiness beyond salvage work to incl
Page 23 and 24: In the spring of 1841, as Green wal
Page 25 and 26: SCUBA The common perception is that
Page 27 and 28: valve. Exhaled air escaped from und
Page 29 and 30: THE UNDERSEA GOURMET George W. Full
Page 31 and 32: e used in 1972 was referred to as a
Page 33 and 34: In 1878, Paul Bert, a French physio
Page 35 and 36: A two-lock recompression tank (abov
Page 37: THE HISTORY OF COMMERCIAL DIVING 35
Page 41 and 42: diving helped revolutionize the oil
Page 43 and 44: of human divers. Progress slowed wi
Page 45 and 46: ADVENTURE ( AND TRAGEDY) BENEATH TH
Page 47 and 48: world when it recovered a grapefrui
Page 49 and 50: As the industry embraces technologi
Page 51 and 52: can get up close and have a tactile
Page 53 and 54: THE HISTORY OF THE ADCI FORMING ADC
Page 55 and 56: Again the U.S. Navy played a large
Page 57 and 58: took nearly three years and many ho
Page 59 and 60: THE ADCI CONTINUES TO BUILD UPON IT
Page 61 and 62: CELEBRATING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF
Page 63 and 64: SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Delgado, Jame
Page 65 and 66: SHARING THE HERITAGE SPECIAL THANKS
Page 67 and 68: The year 1989 proved to be a monume
Page 69 and 70: By 1998 the company was well into d
Page 71 and 72: services are performed from its cor
Page 73 and 74: young crew member named Ray Kronfro
Page 75 and 76: with Brennan on numerous opportunit
Page 77 and 78: During the 1950s, oil and gas produ
Page 79 and 80: and Alcatel Fiber Optics in Cable l
Page 81 and 82: divers with Eason as the site Dive
Page 83 and 84: comprehensive set of safety standar
Page 85 and 86: “Work was not steady during the e
Page 87 and 88: extensive expertise in marine engin
Page 89 and 90:
custom design and fabrication of sm
Page 91 and 92:
in/out for lower tunnel repairs. Wo
Page 93 and 94:
Global was also one of the first su
Page 95 and 96:
McClure started his diving career a
Page 97 and 98:
This primary regional location of A
Page 99 and 100:
photographs and video documentation
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Marine Engineering in Vina del Mar
Page 103 and 104:
years been overshadowed by W. H. St
Page 105 and 106:
Today, MHA is comprised of approxim
Page 107 and 108:
U.S. Underwater Services, LLC has a
Page 109 and 110:
Looking back on a long and successf
Page 111 and 112:
Chesapeake Bay Diving, Inc., based
Page 113 and 114:
ASSOCIATION OF DIVING CONTRACTORS I
Page 115 and 116:
ABOUT THE AUTHOR M IKE C OX Mike Co
Page 117:
LEADERSHIP SPONSORS ISBN: 978-1-944
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